Summary state-of-the-art

Summary of state-of-the-art analysis

We've looked at three different augmented reality related systems that each exhibit different ways of exposing information to the end user. From more complex systems with a large set of features such as Google Maps or more simplistic systems such as Departures App. Our initial idea was to present the information as augmented reality objects placed at certain points of interest, but a final application might consist of multiple views, such as a typical flat 2D map or a more intricate 3D map as that of Pokémon GO.

Google Maps utilizes pictures taken from a car to enhance the experience of looking at the map. Users can pick the ""street-view"" to get an actual image of the area. However, only locations close to a road are available making the ferry surroundings outside the scope of the application. One might argue that there is still the possibilty for users to add pictures which can cover these areas. It's not, however, suitable for an application such as ours to rely only on user input.

Wikitude provides AR technology for app developers thorugh a well-used software developer kit (SDK). It's wide range of showcased users show that the AR technology is easily available. An example of a user interface is "The Speaking Celt" at "the Museum of Celtic Heritage in Salzburg" where a 3D representation of a Celt appears (in the app) at certain locations in the museum presenting information.

The Departures app is a typical example of the AR part of our project idea. Depending on where the user points it's camera view public transportation information is displayed in the direction of the location of the stops/stations. The general impression is that the app is simplistic and easy to use, but the way the informations is presented is a bit dull and could be improved in terms of less clutter. Furthermore, more customizability might be preferable.

Summary - Interviews

Summary - Interviews


Conducting the interviews was an easier task than expected initially. The interview subjects were willing to participate and answer the questions without excessive persuasion needed. Although, the interview subjects were easy to recruit, it was harder to find subjects that hadn't used the ferry before.
All interview subjects were male and their ages ranged from 26 to 38. None of the subjects travelled alone, they were either with a friend or with family. As we only had three interviews, the destinations of the interview subjects didn't vary that much. Two of the subjects were travelling to Skansen and one of the subjects was just on the boat to explore Djurgården.

All of the interviewed subjects owned a smartphone, which they used during the trip to take pictures of the surroundings. When we asked if they wanted more information during the trip, all of them answered that wanted more information. One even suggested that information regarding surrounding sites should be given in audio. Based on the interviews the information regarding Djurgården and locations surrounding the ferry could be needed as there seems to be a genuine interest among some of the interviewed subjects. As of now the ferry ride is mainly aimed at taking travellers from point A to B. The experience of taking the ferry could be enhanced by adding features that would make the ride into a small tour of surrounding locations. As there seems to be a dormant interest in first time travellers to see the area, an application could be well appreciated.

State-of-the-art analysis – Kim Hiltunen

State-of-the-art analysis – Mobile application and web page – Google maps

Google maps developed by Google is a mapping service that can be used as an application on a smartphone or as a web page. The service is used by anyone needing a map to for an example locate an address or use any of the extra features such as traffic information, street view or Google Earth. The mobile application and the web service are both available all around the world.

The web based application
The web based application offers the features regular map, Google Street view, pictures added by users, road descriptions for car, subway/train, walk, bicycle and flying, 2D/3D view and information about places such as museums, parks and subway stations. All the presented services are accessible through the web page.

The street view from the ferry terminal in Slussen.

One thing that makes it easy to navigate around the map is the Google Street view. This service makes it possible to see pictures of different locations and look around 360 degrees. All the pictures are taken from a vehicle moving along the roads, which only makes it possible to view pictures from the roads and their soundings. Therefore, it can’t be used for the ferry between Slussen and Allmäna grand. It’s easy to see what parts are possible to view since Google marked all the viewable parts with blue color.

In the bottom right corner (see picture below) there are some features that are hard to notice. These features are Google Street view, Google Earth, 2D/3D view and user added pictures. Google should make these parts a little clearer to make it more user friendly.

One of the views from the web page, showing information about Gröna lund

 

The mobile application
Compared to the web based service the mobile application has a different setup of features. The mobile has the regular map, a trip planner, traffic information, Google Earth, Satellite view and showing bicycle roads on the map. All the other features that the web service offers, must be downloaded as separate applications. The mobile application could be used with GPS to navigate, it also offers a voice controlled GPS navigation. It’s possible to get maps from over 220 countries around the word and detailed information about over 100 million places.

A first look of the mobile application gives a good impression with a simple design. For an experienced smartphone user, it’s easy to access all the available features in the application. One improvement that could be done is to integrate all the services that can be found on the web application into the mobile application, since they now are separated. Although, it might be a hard task to structure it in a user-friendly way.

Google maps mobile application

Summary
Comparing both the web page and the mobile application there is an obvious difference. Parts of the mobile applications features are divided into separate applications while the web page has all the available features in one place. Since they both are well used applications, I get the feeling that Google are doing as much as they can to make it as user-friendly as possible. Google currently have around 7000 people working only to develop and improve the applications.